An electric hob costs roughly 20p to 30p to cook a typical meal at the standard UK electricity rate of about 26p a unit, though the figure swings widely with how many rings you use and for how long. A single ring on full draws a couple of kilowatts, so it is the time on the heat, not the hob itself, that sets the cost. This short guide gives the real per-ring and per-meal figures and the simple habits that keep them down.
The short answer. A hob ring on full typically draws 1.5 to 2 kW, so at about 26p per kWh it costs roughly 40p to 52p an hour on full, but most cooking uses far less than full power once the pan is hot. A quick single-ring job like scrambled eggs costs only a few pence; a fuller meal using two or three rings for half an hour runs to about 20p to 30p. Induction is the cheapest type because it wastes the least heat.
Why the time on the heat is what counts
A hob ring is a simple heater, and its cost follows the usual rule: power in kilowatts multiplied by the hours it runs multiplied by your unit rate. The headline wattage looks steep, but a ring rarely sits on full for long. You blast it to bring a pan up to heat, then turn it down to a fraction of that to simmer or fry, so the average draw over a meal is well below the peak. That is why the honest way to think about hob cost is per meal, not per ring on full: it is the total time under the pan, at whatever setting, that the meter counts. The same logic runs through every appliance on the running cost calculator.
What cooking on a hob costs
The table gives typical costs for common cooking jobs at the standard price-cap rate of about 26p per kWh, current in mid 2026. Real figures depend on the hob type, the pan, whether you use a lid and how high you run the ring, so treat these as worked examples.
| Cooking job | Rough energy | Cost |
|---|---|---|
| Fry an egg or two (5 min, one ring) | ~0.1 kWh | ~3p |
| Boil a pan of pasta (15 min, lid on) | ~0.4 kWh | ~10p |
| Cook a full meal (2 to 3 rings, 30 min) | ~0.8 to 1.1 kWh | ~20p to 30p |
| Simmer a stew (1 hour, low) | ~0.6 kWh | ~16p |
At an example 26.11p per kWh, the Ofgem price cap for July to September 2026. Costs vary with hob type, pan size, lid use and how hard you run the ring. Induction hobs use the least because they heat the pan directly.
Induction, ceramic and solid plate
Not all electric hobs cost the same to run. An induction hob heats the pan itself through a magnetic field, so almost none of the energy is wasted warming the air or the hob surface, and it responds instantly, which means less time on the heat. A ceramic or radiant hob heats a coil under glass, wasting more as the glass and surround warm up, and an old solid-plate hob is the least efficient of all, slow to heat and slow to cool. For the same meal, induction typically uses noticeably less electricity than ceramic, which is the running-cost half of the case the induction versus gas hob guide sets out in full. If you cook often, that efficiency adds up over the year.
How to cook on a hob for less
A few habits trim every meal. Put a lid on the pan, which traps the heat so the ring can be turned right down and the food still cooks, easily the single biggest saving on a hob. Match the pan to the ring, since a small pan on a big ring throws heat past its sides, and a flat, heavy base makes better contact. Turn the ring down once the pan is hot rather than leaving it on full, because a simmer needs a fraction of the power of a rolling boil. Use only as much water as you need when boiling, since heating extra water just wastes energy, and boil it in the kettle first for pasta or veg, which is quicker and cheaper than heating it from cold on the hob. And for small jobs, a microwave or lidded pan often beats a big ring on full.
The bottom line
An electric hob costs about 20p to 30p for a typical meal, and far less for a quick single-ring job, with the total set by the time under the pan rather than the ring's headline wattage. Cook with a lid on, match the pan to the ring, and turn the heat down once the pan is hot, and you keep it cheap. Induction is the most efficient type if you are choosing a new hob. For where the real money goes across the kitchen and house, the what uses the most electricity in your home guide ranks every appliance.